Ferrari Dino 308 GT4 ride height adjustment | FerrariChat
Buy

Ferrari Dino 308 GT4 ride height adjustment

Discussion in 'Technical Q&A' started by Doug McCowen, Apr 21, 2022.

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, Skimlinks, and others.

  1. Doug McCowen

    Doug McCowen Rookie

    Nov 6, 2011
    2
    Irvine, CA
    #1 Doug McCowen, Apr 21, 2022
    I have never been happy with the ride height of my car, especially the front end. I know that most of this is due to the US regulations at the time it was imported. I would like to lower the car a small amount (1" - 1.5") and do not want to replace the original Koni coil-overs. I have read that many people have replaced them with new adjustable units, such as QA-1 shocks & springs, but were not happy with the new units performance compared to the original Koni units. More than one knowledgeable mechanic has told me, for the type of driving I do, that my best option would be to just buy shorter springs or cut the existing springs down. My question for anyone is, how much approximately should my front springs be shortened per inch of ride height change? I have been told that just a small amount, such as 1/4", could change the ride height by 1".
     
  2. Steve Magnusson

    Steve Magnusson Two Time F1 World Champ
    Lifetime Rossa

    Jan 11, 2001
    26,781
    30°30'40" N 97°35'41" W (Texas)
    Full Name:
    Steve Magnusson
    #2 Steve Magnusson, Apr 21, 2022
    Bad idea to cut the spring as the 308 spring ends are "squared and ground" (i.e., the spring perches are a flat surface perpendicular to the shock axis). Do a search on "lower spring perch" -- by using a different (fabricated) one, you can lower the front coachwork up to ~30mm measured at the top of the wheel arch. This post has the documents and the drawing for the Machine Shop:

    https://www.ferrarichat.com/forum/posts/144305231/
     
  3. Ferrari Tech

    Ferrari Tech Formula 3

    Mar 5, 2010
    1,217
    Georgia
    Full Name:
    Wade Williams
    #3 Ferrari Tech, Apr 22, 2022
    I used Carabu on a set of Boxer shocks. They made them adjustable, rebuilt them and changed the springs. So much better, the ride and handling is really nice. I would do this again if a client wanted a different ride height on his 308/328/Boxer/TR. etc.
     
  4. TTR

    TTR F1 Veteran
    Rossa Subscribed

    Mar 29, 2007
    5,889
    Riverside, CA
    Full Name:
    Timo
    #4 TTR, Apr 22, 2022
    Also, might be worth to keep in mind that all other steering and (dynamic) suspension geometry (& handling) will be affected by changing the ride height, but not necessarily improving any of it.
     
  5. Nino1964

    Nino1964 Formula Junior
    Silver Subscribed

    Aug 14, 2015
    302
    North Georgia
    #5 Nino1964, Apr 23, 2022
    I have Spax adjustable coil overs that I purchased from Superformance. Ride height is easily adjustable and I’m very satisfied with the ride.
     

Share This Page